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Thread: Source for inespensive thin laserable plastic

  1. #1

    Source for inespensive thin laserable plastic

    Hello All,

    Well I finally took the plunge and bought a laser system I went ahead and splurged on a new epilog mini 18 35 watt. I have been making focus masks for telescopes and selling them online which has been working out.

    I make the masks right now out of 1/32" rowmark black ADA alternative. By my math I am paying $1.60 a square inch. That seems like an awful lot for what it is but maybe I am just being cheap .

    So I was wondering is this expensive because it is being sold specifically for laser engraving? Is there a regular old thin black plastic that would cut well on the laser that's not so spendy? Or is this is cheap as it gets? A broader question though is what makes a plastic laserable? I know pvc is out but what specific things do you look for in a plastic that make it ideal?

    Cheers, Allen

  2. #2
    Quote Originally Posted by Allen Jeter View Post
    Hello All,

    Well I finally took the plunge and bought a laser system I went ahead and splurged on a new epilog mini 18 35 watt. I have been making focus masks for telescopes and selling them online which has been working out.

    I make the masks right now out of 1/32" rowmark black ADA alternative. By my math I am paying $1.60 a square inch. That seems like an awful lot for what it is but maybe I am just being cheap .

    So I was wondering is this expensive because it is being sold specifically for laser engraving? Is there a regular old thin black plastic that would cut well on the laser that's not so spendy? Or is this is cheap as it gets? A broader question though is what makes a plastic laserable? I know pvc is out but what specific things do you look for in a plastic that make it ideal?

    Cheers, Allen
    So you pay $460 a for a sheet of 12" x 24"? It's 288 square inches in a 12" x 24" sheet and that material goes for about $9 a sheet or .03 cents a square inch.

    Am I missing something?
    Lasers : Trotec Speedy 300 75W, Trotec Speedy 300 80W, Galvo Fiber Laser 20W
    Printers : Mimaki UJF-6042 UV Flatbed Printer , HP Designjet L26500 61" Wide Format Latex Printer, Summa S140-T 48" Vinyl Plotter
    Router : ShopBot 48" x 96" CNC Router Rotary Engravers : (2) Xenetech XOT 16 x 25 Rotary Engravers

    Real name Steve but that name was taken on the forum. Used Middle name. Call me Steve or Scott, doesn't matter.

  3. #3
    Bah your right my math was way off not sure how I even came up with that.

    So I am paying $30.38 for a 24x48 sheet which is 1152 square inches divided by the sheet cost is ~2.6 cents a square inch which is much cheaper than I was thinking so I guess never mind.
    Last edited by Allen Jeter; 03-16-2009 at 2:06 PM.

  4. #4
    You thought you were making money with your current prices, think how much more profitable you just became
    Lasers : Trotec Speedy 300 75W, Trotec Speedy 300 80W, Galvo Fiber Laser 20W
    Printers : Mimaki UJF-6042 UV Flatbed Printer , HP Designjet L26500 61" Wide Format Latex Printer, Summa S140-T 48" Vinyl Plotter
    Router : ShopBot 48" x 96" CNC Router Rotary Engravers : (2) Xenetech XOT 16 x 25 Rotary Engravers

    Real name Steve but that name was taken on the forum. Used Middle name. Call me Steve or Scott, doesn't matter.

  5. #5
    Join Date
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    Quote Originally Posted by Scott Shepherd View Post
    You thought you were making money with your current prices, think how much more profitable you just became
    Wow, a those markups I'm making about $1000 per 6x6 granite tile I make. Sweet!
    Hi-Tec Designs, LLC -- Owner (and self-proclaimed LED guru )

    Trotec 80W Speedy 300 laser w/everything
    CAMaster Stinger CNC (25" x 36" x 5")
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  6. #6
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    Aurora, CO
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    Isn't the core material on Rowmark just ABS plastic? I think when I have bought sheets that it always has a haircell texture on one side, but it might be an alternative.
    Margaret Turco

    60 watt Universal V-460, Coreldraw X4

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